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Introduction to implementation Before a programmer sits at a computer and starts coding (enter program instructions) other actives must have occurred. A programmer needs to have some kind of model of how the final software system will behave, and usually (hopefully) has developed or been provided with some kind of software design document. Implementation of modern software systems often happens a number of times during the life cycle of a software system. For example a prototyping approach may have been adopted for the software project, where parts (or even all) of the system are designed and implemented and then evaluated, to provide feedback on how to go back and improve the design of the system. Another common situation where implementation happens a number of times is when a software system is so large, or important, that an organization decides to introduce the system in stages. Thus one part of a system may be designed and implemented (perhaps a new stock control system), while other parts of the system are still in the modeling or design stage (perhaps the supplier or payroll systems). As the project goes on more and more sub-systems may be redesigned and implemented to eventually form a coherent, integrated corporate information system. A third situation where software implementation occurs two or more times is when an organization using an implemented system changes its requirements (perhaps for Y2K, or the introduction of the Euro, or a change in some legislation effecting an organizations taxation). In such cases a system needs to be analyzed and modeled again, taking on board changes, the changes designed and then implemented. Even for small software projects such as those you will undertake on this module, it is important you have analyzed, modeled and worked the design of a piece of software before actually beginning to sit at the computer and start coding. This part of this unit will help you investigate the process of writing computer programs, and of their translation into instructions understandable on a given hardware computer system.
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